Drone Ship – Page 3 – Spaceflight Now

Head of BulgariaSat says satellite project would be impossible without SpaceX

June 22, 2017

On the eve of the launch of his country’s first communications satellite on a Falcon 9 rocket, the chief executive of BulgariaSat credited SpaceX’s cost-cutting ways with making space accessible for small nations and money-conscious companies like his own.

Photos: SpaceX booster lands for second time on drone ship

April 4, 2017

SpaceX’s reused Falcon 9 first stage booster returned to a landing on an ocean-going platform a few minutes after launching March 30 with the SES 10 communications satellite, then returned to Port Canaveral early Tuesday.

Musk previews busy year ahead for SpaceX

April 4, 2017

There’s a lot on SpaceX’s agenda this year if the company can maintain its pace, including refinements of the Falcon 9 rocket to hasten refurbishment between flights and the debut of the long-delayed Falcon Heavy launch vehicle with two side boosters recycled from previous missions, Elon Musk said after last week’s successful liftoff of a previously-flown rocket.

SpaceX flies rocket for second time in historic test of cost-cutting technology

March 31, 2017

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sporting a fresh cleaning and several refurbishments took off Thursday from a seaside launch pad in Florida to send an SES communications satellite into space, then landed on a platform in the Atlantic Ocean to repeat a feat the same booster achieved nearly one year ago.

Previously flown Falcon 9 rocket lifted upright in readiness for launch

March 30, 2017

Watch a time-lapse video of the 229-foot-tall (70-meter) Falcon 9 rocket being lifted into place on pad 39A in readiness for the launch of the SES 10 communications satellite. This will be a major milestone for SpaceX as it will mark the first time a flown Falcon 9 first stage has been reused.

Falcon 9 launch timeline with SES 10

March 30, 2017

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket is set for liftoff from Cape Canaveral on Thursday evening, heading due east over the Atlantic Ocean to deliver the SES 10 communications satellite into orbit 32 minutes later.

Live coverage: SpaceX launches previously-flown rocket

March 30, 2017

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, powered by a previously-flown booster, lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:27 p.m. EDT (2227 GMT) Thursday. The mission, which lofted the SES 10 communications satellite, marks the first time SpaceX has reused the first stage of one of its Falcon 9 launchers.

SpaceX ready to put rocket reuse vision to the test

March 29, 2017

A Falcon 9 booster that flew into space last year is set to launch again Thursday from Florida’s Space Coast with an SES communications satellite on a historic mission that could make major strides in validating SpaceX’s audacious goal of recovering and reusing launchers, an achievement the company says will revolutionize the rocket business. Liftoff is set for 6:27 p.m. EDT (2227 GMT).

Falcon 9 booster, first recovered off West Coast, back in port

January 17, 2017

The first stage of a Falcon 9 rocket launched Saturday has returned to port in Southern California after landing on a floating platform in the Pacific Ocean, ready for refurbishment and potential reuse on a future mission.

Watch as Falcon 9 launches with 10 Iridium satellites and its first stage lands

January 15, 2017

Watch the first SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch since a catastrophic launch pad explosion at Cape Canaveral. The Falcon 9 first stage was successfully recovered after landing on a floating platform in the Pacific.